The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1887-07-13
West Point.

- North and east the Point is hemmed
in by the mighty river, west and south
by the rock-ribbed Highlands. The
plateau, little by little, has been leveled
and graded, until to-day it is broad,
beautiful, grass-grown plain, bounded on
the west by the cosy homes of the officers
and professors, on the south by the
stately barracks, the grim, old-fashioned
Academic" the Grecian chapel, and
the domed turrets of the Library. Skirt
ing the precipitous river banks, broad,
graded road encloses the plateau on, the
north and east, and others, as level and
carefully kept, border it on west and
south, and nearly bisect italong the mcrl-
dian. Covered with well-cropped turf,
the western half of the "plain" is de.
voted to infantry drills; the batteries
and the crunching hoofs of the horses
are limited to the gravel of the eastern
half. All around are the rocky heights,
trimmed with pine and fir and cedar,
with here and there peep at the stony
parapet of some old redoubt or battery
thrown up in the days OF the Revolution.
The square built hostelry, once and foI
years known as Roe's, stands perched at
the northeast limit of the plain. Statues
in bronze or marble gleam here and there
amid the foliage, and tell of deeds OF
heroism and devotion on the part of the
sons of the old academy. The tall white
staff glistens against the dark background
of the Highlands, and throws to the
breeze, high over all, the brilliant colors
of the Stars and Stripes; and on the
easternmost verge of the broad plateau
lies the camp ground, the summer home
of the Corps of Cadets.
Laid out in mathematical regularity,
with well-graveled pathways, sentry
posts and "color-line," and shaded by
beautiful trees, the encampment, like
everything else at West Point, is so ex-
ouisitely trim and neat as to leave little
resemblance to the "tented field" as seen
in actual service on the frontier. The white
tents CLEAN in accurate ranks as though
they were pitched by aid of the Straight
edge" rule. Farthest to the west are the
guard and visitors tents; then comes an
open space between them and the color
line, along which the arms are stacked
every bright day. 1t is in this space
the camp ceremonies-guard mounting,
dress parade, and the weekly inspections
take place. Immediately behind the
color line are the tents of four companies,
two inward facing rows to each, with a
broad alley, known as the general
parade" separating the right and left
wings. The company streets run east
and west perpcndicularly to the color
line, and the tents of the cadet officers
are pitched looking west along the
streets of their respective companies:
Behind the rows of company officers
tents, and opposite the right and left of
camp, are the larger domiciles OF those
cadet magnates, the adjutant and quar-
termaster. Back still further are the
double tents of the four army officers who
are immediate commanders and instruc.
tors of the four companies: md behind
them all, at the rear of camp, is the big
marquee" of the Commandant Of Cadets.
Dotted about the rear of camp are the
little tents occupied by the drum boy
"orderlies," the boot-blacks, varnishers,
etc., and around them all, day and night,
PAGES the chain of sentries, which, posted
in mid-June, is never removed until the
simultaneous fall of every tent on the
2sth of August.-Rarpers' Magazine.